Emergency Services Open Day Set to Wow Albany

MEDIA RELEASE
20 November 2012Emergency Services Open Day Set to Wow
Albany

The countdown is on to the outdoor action
event of the year: the Staying Alive, Emergency Services
and Volunteer Open Day at Albany Lakes Civic Park.

Staying Alive is kicking off at 10am on Saturday 1
December showcasing thework the New Zealand Fire
Service, New Zealand Police, St John ambulance, Civil
Defence and emergency service rescue teams do on a daily
basis.

The exhilarating educational day will be full of
show-stopping displays including road crash rescue
re-enactments where event-goers will see the how the “jaws
of life” rescue trapped victims in a car crash, rural fire
fighting displays, Air Force Striker demonstrations and
police dogs showing off their training skills. Kids will
also get the chance to participate in a combat challenge
which includes experiencing the power of a fire hose and
scaling scaffolding.

“Our unforgettable shows and
displays will allow both kids and adults to learn more about
the work of New Zealand emergency services while having fun
at the same time,” says Planning and Intelligence Officer
for the NZ Fire Service, Terry Hewitt. “If you’ve got
little ones that get excited by sirens, want to be
fire-fighters or paramedics, or just want to get close to a
police dog, then this is the day for them.”

Gold coin
donations collected throughout the day by firefighters and
other services volunteers stationed on car park entrances
will go to the Burns Support Group Charitable Trust.
All donations raisedwill help provide care and
assistance for burns victims and their families as well as
providing vital burn prevention education.

“There is a
serious message behind this action-packed day,” adds
Hewitt. “Every year emergency services are called to
thousands of incidents involving children. Our goal is to
keep everyone safe this summer and education is key to
achieving that goal.”

At 1pm, a very special visitor
dressed in red will make a memorable arrival to the main
stage at Civic Park before taking up residence at Westfield
Albany until Christmas Eve.

The Staying Alive
event concludes at 4pm and is followed by entertainment
provided by Westfield Albanyfrom
6pm with a talented line-up including Kiwi
boy band Titanium, New Zealand hip-hop superstar J Williams
and singer-songwriter sensation Brooke Duff.

The
spectacular Westfield Albany outdoor Christmas tree will
light up at 9pm followed by the famous annual Westfield
Albany fireworks display.

“This is the fourth year we
have delivered the lighting of the tree and the fireworks
display,” says Lorraine Gatiss, Senior Centre Manager at
Westfield Albany. “To welcome the big man in the red suit
and have the fireworks close the day is a small way for us
to give back to the community.There will be something for
everyone on the day.”

To keep up to date with the
event details, line-ups and Westfield Christmas
activities around the country visit www.westfield.co.nz. For further
information on emergency services visit their individual
websites:

EndsNote to
editorsStaying Alive Event
Programme:10.00am:
Staying Alive starts10.30am:
Road Crash Rescue: Thrilling re-enactments
of road crashes including “jaws of life” rescues. This
display will be a team effort with police managing traffic
and with the Fire Service and St Johns on standby to attend
to the injured. 11.30am: Airport Striker Demo: See how Air Force Strikers
respond to a plane crash or an issue on the runway.
12.00pm: Police Dog
Display: Police dogs will be showing off their detective
skills. Watch them sniff out and chase down a
baddie!12.30pm: Road Crash
Rescue: (as at 10.30am)1.00pm:
Santa’s Arrival: Everyone’s favourite
man in red will “drop in” to the main stage at Civic
Park to greet the crowd.2.00pm:
Rural Fire Fighting Display: The simulation
of a rural fire with a “monsoon bucket” in operation.
Also includes the re-enactment of how a house fire starts
and how to prevent one. 3.00pm:
Road Crash Rescue: (as at 10.30am and
12.30pm)4.00pm: Staying
Alive ends6.00pm:
Entertainment line-up including Titanium, J
Williams and Brooke Duff. 9.00pm:
Lighting of the spectacular Westfield Albany
outdoor Christmas tree and the famous fireworks
extravaganza.

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